Recent trends in Sugar Grove Township's groundwater informed by 5 years of water level monitoring and 3 years of water quality sampling

This study, funded by the Sugar Grove Water Authority, is a proactive examination of the shallow aquifer system, a resource that provides water to the people, habitats, and businesses of Sugar Grove Township in Kane County, IL. The shallow aquifer system refers to the glacially deposited sand and gravel overlying fractured dolomite and shale bedrock. Because of its proximity to the surface, this aquifer system is susceptible to human contamination and climatic impacts such as drought. The Sugar Grove Water Authority has worked in partnership with the Illinois State Water Survey to establish a groundwater monitoring network to track groundwater levels at six sites and conduct a three-year water quality sampling campaign. Thirty water quality samples were collected at seventeen different sites to understand the geochemistry of the shallow aquifers and assess natural and human-derived impacts on water quality.